8.31.2010

Going down the Intracoastal Canal just west of Lafitte, LA one morning, I spied what appeared to be a shrimp boat tow-lining a houseboat down the canal. I grabbed my camera, zoomed in on it and sure enough, this is what I saw.It turned out to be a pretty nice-looking, homemade houseboat, and a welcome addition to my collection of pictures.

If you look at the far right of the picture you will see an airboat full of tourists on a swamp cruise. They were doing the same thing I was, taking pictures, smiling and waving. Enjoying the beautiful bayou morning and the sights to be seen in the land that I love.

8.25.2010

Peggy and I went over to Houma, LA. yesterday running errands and stuff. While at Lowes, we ran into some folks we know, had a nice visit, checked on some stuff we need to order, and just browsed around the store. We love going around looking in the garden section and all the outdoor stuff. Looking and walking along, I barely noticed that a couple things jumped into the basket I was pushing down the aisles. When we decided to check out, I reached in the basket and put the 2(!) items Peggy had picked up on the counter. A new hummingbird feeder and a fly swatter. The nice young lady started checking us out while Peg dug in her purse for cash. As I stood there, I was suddenly struck with a thought, and das how some of my best B.S. lines are born; a sudden inspiration.As I waited, I had been chatting and exchanging pleasantries with the checkout gal, so with out missing a beat I straight-faced, calm-voiced told this tale:"We can hardly wait to get home, we so excited!!" "Why?" she asked. "I was surfing around on the web last night and I stumbled across a recipe for hummingbird gumbo". She looked up at that point somewhere between shocked and curious. I didn't skip a beat and continued, "yep, we gonna take this here feeder and hang it in a tree and stand real still behind the tree, when the hummingbirds come to drink, I'm gonna swat them with this here fly swatter, and in no time at all we gonna have hummingbird gumbo!"1-hummingbird feeder-$11.001-flyswatter-$1.50The expression on the face of the checkout gal; PRICELESS!! :-D

8.23.2010

In the blistering humid heat of a South Louisiana summer, every time we pass a cow pasture, half the herd is usually "coolin' it" in the water. This bunch seemed to enjoy the waves of the wake that our boat made as we passed by and they never flinched. They seem to take turns, some grazin' and some chillin' in their own swimmin' hole. They even have a flock of Egrets sittin' on their backs, on "fly biting" patrol. So eat ya hearts out you prairie cows, these bayou bovine know how to "pass a good time" and beat the heat down here in Cajun country.

Last month at work we made half a dozen trips up and down the Mississippi River from New Orleans on down to below Venice, Louisiana. On every trip we kept passing by the HUGE ship, 'A Whale'. This ship is a specialized oil recovery vessel brought here to skim oil out of the Gulf. The mistake was that the ship is incapable of skimming oil that has been dispersed. The skimmers on board this massive vessel suck up too much water and can't seperate it out fast enough. Plus, the ship is so huge that it can't navigate quick enough to track down the narrow bands of oil that change with the currents and wind flow. The ship is currently anchored just north of Venice and has been for at least 5 weeks. It is fully crewed, 'cause we see the guys walking around on deck. The swabbies have a swinging scaffold hanging over the side and have been buffing and painting a stripe down the hull. It kinda makes ya wonder who is "footin' da bill" for this whale of a mistake don't it?

As most of yall know, I am a big fan of the TV show 'Deadliest Catch'. Last time I was home I watched a special as several of the boat captains paid tribute to their fallen comrade, Captain Phil Harris. Guys who work on boats are a close knit bunch, and I have seen over the years several different ways guys honor lost friends. I was touched by the crew of the Wizard as Captain Keith rang 8 bells and the crew slid a full crab pot over the side, in honor of their lost friend. The crew of the Time Bandit had a more rousing send off by shooting off a bunch of fireworks and whooped and waved their hats in the air. This really put a tear in my eye; it's more fitting in my book. Cajuns do mourn the loss of a friend but we always finish up by celebrating the person's life.The last tribute on the show showed Sig, the captain of the Northwestern, making a moving statement about a lone seagull that had perched on the bow of his boat. His thought was that the seagull was the spirit of the departed had come to say goodbye. This kinda struck me funny and I thought about it all month at work. Seagulls are fun to watch and all, but a seagull as the spirit of a lost sailor?? GIVE ME A BREAK!!

If seagulls are symbolic, I wonder who this squawkin', struttin' crappin' bunch represents. Certainly no friends of mine. :-)